Creeping toy



O. STE! N ITZ CREEPING TOY Aug, 55,1947.

Filed Nov. 3b, 1945 m Qu B 6 j 5 F ,y H LJ- oO .w n g 7 .n H c H 7 ,..O

INVENTOR.- o 67E/Mrz.

mmm/Ey Y Patented Aug. 5, 1947 ZZESi CREEPING TOY Otto Steinitz, NewYork, N. Y. Application November 30, 1945, Serial No. 631,825

Claims.

My invention relates to creeping toys, for eX- ample to toys simulating a turtle or another creeping animal.

Objects of my invention are creeping toys moving horizontally in a funny, surprising, realistic and apparently spontaneous manner, toys creeping over the ground or a substantially horizontal surface by sliding movement of their feet or supporting bases without rolling or walking, that is withoutJ temporarily lifting their feet from the ground, and toys having lower surfaces slidingly contacting the ground Without denting, scratching or grooving the same.

Other objects are to operate these toys without clockworks, springs or any other articial power source, to operate these toys by a vertically directed manual or outer force which, apparently, does not drive the toy in the moving direction, and, thereby, to make the horizontal movement of the toy appear spontaneous, surprising and amusing.

Further objects are a manually operated creeping toy which moves in one definite forward direction without any apparent means pushing or pulling the toy in this particular direction or preventing the toy from moving in the opposite or in any other direction, and thereby to make the movement of the toy still more surprising and amusing. I

Still other objects are a creeping toy which isA operated by a simple hand movement requiring no skill, no appreciable elort and, while substantially vertical, no accurate direction, nor requiring the combination of simultaneous movements in several directions, and to make this operation easy and adapted for a little child.

Still further objects are a creeping toy of utmost simplicity of structure, to make, by this very simplicity, the movement of the toy still more surprising and amusing, and to provide for simple, inexpensive and quick` manufacture of the toy.

Still other objects and advantages will appear from the following description, from the appended claims and from the accompanying drawing showing an exemplifying embodiment of the invention.

In order to attain these objects, I use a structure resting on two bases or sets of feet which are freely slidable on any substantially horizontal ground and are movable relatively to each other to and fro in a substantially horizontal direction. These bases have lower surfaces Which are suiliciently large and smooth or even to support the structure without denting or substantially entering the ground whereby the toy can be slidably shifted in all directions without scratching the supporting ground surface and without any other resistance than the friction between the bases and the ground. According to an essential feature of the invention, the friction of one base is made different from that of the other base. This can be made by providing the bases with surfaces of different frictional coeflicients, or, preferably, by loading the bases differently, or by both. When the bases are moved relatively to each other, the sliding tendency of the base having the larger friction is suppressed and this base remains stationary while the other base slides over the ground in the same direction as this movable base moves relatively to the stationary base.

In inoperative condition of the toy or when no manual force is exerted, the loads of the bases are determined by the toys weight and its distribution over the bases. This distribution is determined by the ratio between the respective distances of the bases from the vertical line through the toys center of gravity or, in other words, by the horizontal distances of the bases from this center.

According to another feature of the invention, the loads are modied, that is increased or reduced, during the operation of the toy by a vertical outer or manual force which simultaneously causes the horizontal relative movement of the two bases and which acts along a vertical line having a distance from the toys center of gravity whereby this force is distributed over the two bases differently from the distribution of the toys weight. This force and the mentioned distances are so directed and measured that, during the relative movement of the bases in one direction, one base has the larger load or friction and that, during the reverse relative movement, the other base has the larger load or friction.

Due to this reversal of the load or frictional relationship, the stationary and the slidable bases exchange roles whenever the relative movement is reversed whereby the two bases move alternatingly in the same direction relative to the ground. This mechanical trick or principle makes it possible to attain the objects of the invention in a surprisingly impressive and simple manner, for eXample,`by the embodiment shown in the drawing in which:

Fig. 1 shows a front view of this illustrative embodiment,

Fig. 2 shows a longitudinal cross-section taken along the line 2-2 in Fig. 3.

Fig. 3 shows a View of the same embodiment seen from the lower side.

Fig. 4 shows a schematically simplied side view of the same embodiment, adapted for explanation of certain force and measure relations.

Referring to the drawing, numeral I designates a body comprising an upper plate or back 2 which may be round and may have a convex upper surface simulating the back of an animal, and two feet 3 ainxed to the plate 2. The feet 3 have even, lower surfaces contacting the ground and forming together a weight supporting base Il of the toy. Another body 5 comprises a beam or narrow plate 6 positioned under the plate 2 and two feet 'I amxed to the beam 6. The feet 'I' have even, lower surfaces contacting the ground and forming together the other base 8 of the toy.

The bodies I and 5 are guided relatively to each other in a substantially horizontal direction by any suitable means. Preferably, both bodies are hinged to two arms or connecting members 9 and I9. Hinge axles II and I2 may Ibe'carried by lobes or projections I3 extending from the lower side of the plate 2. Hinge axles I4 and I 5 may be carried by extensions I6 of the beam 6. The member 9 has bores for the passage of the hinge axles II and I4. The member I9 has bores for the passage of the hinge axles I2 and I5. The member 9 may have a front extension I'I' simulating the head of an animal, and the member I9 may have a rear extension I8 simulating the tail of the animal.. Preferably, the longitudinal distance between the axles II and I2 equals about the distance between the axles I4 and I5, and the vertical distance between the axles II and I4 equals about the distance between the axles I2 and I5 whereby the bodies I and 5 and the connecting members 9 and Iii form a movable system hinged at the corners of `a parallelogram, and the bodies I and 5 or the :bases 4 and 8 can move to and fro parallel to each other in a substantially horizontal direction, Without any substantial resistance, as far as the structure permits, end stops for this movement being formed by the Contact of one or both of the members 9 and I0 with one of the bodies, for example with the plate 2.

A substantially vertically extending member I9 -is attached to a vertically movable point of this system, for example to a point of the head extension IT of the connecting member 9. 'Ihe member I9 can be moved in vertical direction by a manual force which may act on the upper end of the member I9. Instead or in addition, another vertically extending member 29 may be attached to another vertically movable point, for example to the tail extension I8 of the connecting member I9. Each of the members I9 and 29 may be a cord or a similar flexible element adapted to be pulled or may be a rod or similar stili element adapted to be pulled or pushed.

The vertical extension or direction of the members I9 and 20 permits operation of the toy without pushing or `pulling the same in the creeping or horizontal direction, and has the additional advantage that the toy can be conveniently operated by an upright person. Preferably, the members I9 and 20 are suiciently long to reach from the toy positioned on the ground to the hands of such a person. In the drawing, the members I9 and 29 are represented broken oi for the sake of space economy.

The parts of the toy are so arranged and weighted that the center of gravity 2| of the toy is located in a vertical line positioned between the bases 4 and 8 or at least between the outer edges of these bases. Preferably, the center of gravity 2l is considerably nearer to one of the bases, for example to the front base 8 whereby this latter base is considerably heavier weighted than the other base. The distribution of the toys weight over the two bases is not absolutely constant, a slight modicatio-n of this distribution resulting from the relative movement of the bodies I and 5 which movement shifts the one or the other of the bases in the same direction, but in a lesser degree than the center of gravity. This slight modication of Weight distribution can be neglected in the description of the toys operation.

Each base is sufficiently broad, or the feet forming the base are suii'iciently spread laterally, and the two bases have a sufcient longitudinal distance for the two bases to form together or t0 dene an area supporting the toy stably under all conditions.

The movable system may beso weighted or may have a vertically movable part which is so heavy that the gravity tends to move the system into one of its extreme positions. Preferably, thehead E'I is made sufficiently heavy to move, by its weight, the bodies into the relative position shown in Fig. 2 in full lines whereby the bodies make their relative movement in one of the two opposite directions automatically. The heavy head Il, in addition, facilitates the proper location of the toys center of gravity which, if one of the movements is automatic, must be nearer to the base 8 or to that base which is to be stationary during the automatic movement. The reverse relative movement may be effected in this case either by pulling the member I9 which may be iiexible or stiff or by pushing a stiff member 20 down. If movement in one direction is automatic, only one of the members I9 and 20 is necessary and the other member may be omitted. l

The movable system is so designed that the base 8 has a larger load or friction than the base when the relative movement urges the base 4 in forward direction, and that this relationship between the two bases is reversed when the reverse relative movementurges the base 3 in Vforward direction. This is a structural feature residing in definite and particular relations between measures of parts of the movable system as will be shown in the following.

Fig. 4 shows the movable system schematically and in that position where the parallelogram is rectangular. The small deviations from this position which occur during the relative movements are neglected in the following calculation for the sake of simplification and clearer explanation. The arrow Q indicates the total weight of the toy. A and B indicate the loads of the bases B and Il respectively, W the weight of the head I'I, and H the manual force operating the member I9. The arrows Q, A, B and W point in that direction in which the respective forces act with respect to the toy. The horizontal distances of the bases from the toys center of gravity 2I or the distances of A and B from Q are a and b respectively. The horizontal distance of the member I9 or of the force H from A or the base 8 is c. The vertical distance between the hinges II and III is d. The horizontal distance of H or of the member I9 from these hinges is h. The horizontal distance of W from these hinges is w.

Q, W, H, a, b, c, d, h and w may have various and a c m l- H m (2) The base 4 is farther from A than the base 8, that is b is larger than a. It results that, when H is zero, that is when no manual force is exerted, B is smaller than A and equal to i a-I- b (3) The required tendency to move automatically by gravity defines a relationship which, for the illustrative embodiment shown, can be deduced from Fig. 4. Obviously, the product Ww must be larger than the product fBd (where is the coefficient of friction). Inserting the value (3) for B, we nd that W/ Q must be larger than a d fxmxa Inserting the chosen values for a, b, d and w, we find that, in the exemplifying embodiment, W/Q must be larger than 0.18 f. In this embodiment, the weight of the head I'I, W, is 24 per cent of the toys total weight Q, that is W/Q equals 0.24 whereby this condition is fulfilled for friction coefficients f ranging between zero and 1.3, that is for all practical purposes. The chosen value of W provides for an excess of moving force which is larger or smaller, depending on the actual value of f. This excess is consumed for more or less quick acceleration of the automatic movement.

The statement th'at the manual force H makes the load B larger than the load A or reverses the positive sign of (A-B) into the negative, denes a relationship between the values a, b and c. From the Equations 1 and 2 follows that b-a a+b+2c A-B-Qmf a+b If H is zero, (A-B) is obviously positive, b being larger than a. (A-B) becomes negative if HX (a-i-b-l-Zc) is larger than QX (b-a) or if b-a lil/Wm The measures a, b and c are so chosen that this condition is fulfilled. The value H/Q can be determined in the following way:

Obviously, the force H is just as large asnecessary to overcome the weight of the head W and the ground friction A of the base 8 when the manual force turns the connecting member 9 around the hinge axle II. The very small additional resistances, for example the friction of the hinges, can be neglected. It results that th'e product Hh is equal to the sum of the products Ww and fAd. After inserting the value from the formula (l) for A and some transformation, we nd:

, 6 or, with the chosen values of W/Q, a, b, C, d, h and w:

12-1-21f H/Q6o+4sf Assuming that f varies between Zero and 1.3, H/Q varies between 0.2 and 0.321.v Additional resistances, due to hinge friction and so on, may make H/Q a little larger. In any case, H/Q is larger than (b-a)/(a+b+2c) or 0.1818 whereby the condition for reversal of the sign of (A-B) or of the load relationship between th'e two bases is fulfilled.

The above given Values of a, b and c fulfill also the further condition that the load A remains positive and that, consequently, the base is not lifted from the ground, but moves sliding over the same. The equation (1) shows that A is positive if for the chosen values of a., b and c,

equals 0.4375

For the entire range of f, H/ Q is smaller th'an this latter value.

When the manual force is exerted, A is reduced from 0.7 Q to a value between 0.38 and 0.186 Q, and B is increased from 0.3 Q to a value between 0.42 and 0.493 Q. Both loads A and B remain positive, but their difference changes from positive into negative.

When the movable system is moved by the manual force, the base 4 is converted into that base which has the larger load and friction and, therefore, stands still while the base 8 and the body 5 slide forward from the position shown in full lines into the position lshown in dotted lines in Fig. 2. At the same time, the head il and the tail I8 move from the positions shown in full lines into that shown in dotted lines in the same figure. Then, the member I9 is relaxed whereupon the head I'I drops and, by its weight, moves the bodies I and 5 relatively to each other in the opposite direction. At this time, the base 8 has the larger load and friction and stands still while the base 4 and the body I slide forward relatively to the ground. Then the pull on the member I0 is repeated whereby the base 8 makes another step, and so on, alternating pulling and relaxing of the member I9 resulting in alternating sliding steps of the two bodies in the same forward direction relatively to the ground.

During each of these steps, the momentarily sliding base, being less loaded than the momentarily stationary base, moves against a frictional resistance much smaller than that resistance which would correspond to half the weight of the toy. This has the additional advantage that the force necessary for moving the toy is relatively small and that the toy can easily creep over a ground of relatively high friction.

If the head is not suciently heavy or if the two bodies do not move automatically in one of the two relative directions, alternative movement in these two directions may be effected by one stiff member I9 or 2i! which is alternately pushed and pulled vertically, or may be effected by alternating use of both members {'9 and 20. In the latter case, both members are preferably pulled and may be flexible. In each of these cases of operation, a reversal of load relationship corresponding to the inventive principle results from the same manual force which simultaneously causes a reversal of the relative movement of the two bodies and a reversal of that direction in which these bodies are urged to slide relatively to the ground, provided that the distances of the bases 4 and 8 and of the operated members i8 and/or 20 from the vertical line through the center of gravity 2l are suitably measured.

Suitable values of these distances can be determined for any case of operation, whether one or two members i9 or 2D are used and whether they are pulled or pushed, by a calculation .corresponding to that given above for one of these cases of operation, or can be found by experiment. Properly measured, these distances fulfill the requirements of which this calculation is the mathematical deduction or expression. With other words, these distances are so measured that the respective manual force makes that base which is simultaneously urged in forward direction less loaded than the other base.

The exemplifying calculation given previously assumes that both bases have the same co-efcient of friction. If the bases have different coefiicients of friction, for example if the ground contacting surface of one base is made rougher than that of the other base, the structural conditions and the corresponding calculations have to be slightly modified. In this case, instead of the sign of (A-B), the sign of (Af-BV), where f is the co-eicient of friction of the base 8 and f that of the base 4, decides which of the bases is stationary and which is slidable relatively to the ground. The horizontal distances of the bases 8 and 4 and of the members I9 and 20 from the center of gravity 2l are so measured that the manual force makes the friction resulting from the load and from the co-emcient of friction smaller on that base which is simultaneously urged forward than on the other base.

This relationship of measures can be expressed in mathematical form by the same method as has been used before. Under consideration of the different co-ecients of friction, the results are modified. For example, the base 8 is stationary and the base 4 is slidable when H is zero if (bXf) is made larger than (a f) or if b/a is made larger than f"/f. In this case b is not necessarily larger than a. The force H reverses the sign of Af-Bf) if is smaller than H/Q, this latter value being determined in the same manner as in the previous calculation.

I desire it understood that my invention is not confined to the particular embodiment shown and described, the same being merely illustrative, and that the invention may be carried out in other ways without departing from the spirit of my invention, as it is obvious that the particular embodiment shown and described is only one of the many that may be employed to attain the objects of my invention.

I claim:

1. A creeping toy comprising a movable system comprising two bodies guided relatively to each otherin a substantially horizontal direction, each of said bodies having a base slidably contacting the ground, said bases forming a stable support of the toy, and means to move said bodies to and fro relatively to each other whereby each of said bases is urged in a direction opposite to that in which the other base is urged simultaneously and is urged alternatingly forward and backward relatively to the ground, said means comprising a vertically extending member connected to said system at the same side from the toys center of gravity as one of said bases, said member being operated by a vertical manual force and moving said bodies relatively to each other, the horizontal distances of said member and of said bases from said center being so directed and measured that said force makes that base which is being urged forward less loaded than the other base.

2. A creeping toy comprising a movable system comprising two bodies guided relatively to each other forward and backward in a substantially horizontal direction, each of said `bodies having a base slidably contacting the ground, said bases having opposite directed and differently measured horizontal distances from the toys center of gravity whereby the base having the smaller 'distance is more loaded than the other base, said system having a vertically movable weight having its lowest position when the less loaded base is in its most forward position, and being suiciently heavy to move said system automatically into said forward position; and a vertically extending member connected to said system at the same side from the toys center of gravity as one of said bases, operated by `a vertical manual force and moving said system in a direction opposite to said automatic movement, the horizontal distances of said member and of said bases fromV said center being so directed and measured that said force makes that base which has the smaller distance from said center less loaded than the other `base while said force is being exerted.

3. A creeping toy comprising a movable system comprising two bodies guided relatively to each other in a substantially horizontal direction, each of said bodies having a base slidably contacting the ground, said bases having opposite directed distances from the toys center of gravity; and two vertically extending members connected to said system, operated by vertically upward directed manual force and moving said bodies in opposite relative directions, one of said members being positioned at the same side from said center as one of said bases, and the other member being positioned at the same side as the other base whereby alternating operation of said members alternatingly makes one base less loaded than the other base.

4. A creeping toy comprising a movable system comprising two bodies, each having two hinges positioned at substantially the same height over the ground, and two arms, one connecting one hinge of one of said bodies to one hinge of the other body and the other arm connecting the two other hinges, each of said .bodies having a base slidably contacting the grotmd, said bases forming a stable support of the toy; and means moving said system to and fro whereby said bodies are move-d relatively to each other in a substantially horizontal direction and said bases are urged in opposite directions and, alternatingly, forward and backward, said means comprising a vertically extending member connected to one of said arms, operated by vertical manual force and moving said system, the horizontal distances of said member and of said .bases from the toys center of gravity being so directed and measured that said force makes that base which is urged forward less loaded than the other base.

5. A creeping toy comprising a movable system comprising two bodies guided relatively to each other in a substantially horizontal direction, each of said bodies having a base slidably contacting the ground, said bases forming a stable support of the toy and having different co-eiiicients of friction; and means moving said bodies to and fro relatively to each other whereby each base is urged in a direction opposite to that in which the other base is simultaneously urged, and is urged alternatingly forward and backward relatively to the ground, said means comprising a vertically extending member connected to said system at the same side from the toys center of gravity as one of said bases, said member being operated by a vertical manual force and moving said bodies relatively to each other, the horizontal distances of said member and of said bases from said center being so directed and measured that said force makes the friction resulting from load and `eoecient of friction smaller on that base which is urged forward than the friction on the other base.

' OTTO STEINITZ. 

